


Borrowed Power, Endless Love

by Raspberry_Lemonade



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: F/M, Natsu is really really in love with Lucy, a ton of tactile love because I'm a slut for physical affection, basically my headcannon about the girls being pregnant, mentally mature Natsu, so much love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-05 19:44:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20278792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raspberry_Lemonade/pseuds/Raspberry_Lemonade
Summary: "What's this really about, Natsu?""Levy, how do you feel about babies?" he blurts, carefully creating a pile of grass on his knee."Babies? Like, in general, or actually having one?""Both, I guess?"He glances at her out of the corner of his eye to see her thinking about it."I've never thought about it. Gajeel and I haven't really talked about them, but I don't think I would mind having one.""Anyway!" she suddenly says, punching his arm lightly, "Shouldn't you be talking to Lucy about babies if you want one?""Levy, you're gonna have a baby."





	Borrowed Power, Endless Love

Something was different. Natsu could _smell_ it.

It's faint, almost not even there, but it's enough change that Natsu needs to _know_.

He greets Lucy before he does anything, snuggling up to her back where she sits on a barstool and inhaling her scent. She doesn't acknowledge him verbally - she's talking to Mira about the upcoming Sorcerer Weekly photoshoots - but she does reach back with one hand to pet his head where he's buried his face in her nape. With the other hand, she idly runs her nails over the skin of his arm where he's wrapped around her and he loves her for it. He falls more in love with her every day.

When he's satisfied himself for the moment, he plops down facing away from the bar on the stool next to Lucy and keeps a hand on her leg. Mira pushes a plate of food towards him, but he's preoccupied with the new scent in the guild. Idly, he feathers his fingers over Lucy's thigh, up and down from her knee to her skirt hem and back, and watches the other guild members with increasing concentration.

The thing is, it's such a subtle change in scent that it could just be someone's really strong emotions. People, especially wizards, all smelled distinctly, but sometimes emotions messed that up. Natsu had thought for a long time that it was an imbalance of their magic, but Gajeel had eventually told him that different emotions just make people sweat more and that can change their scent some. Makes sense, Natsu supposes, but back to the matter at hand.

He'd learned the hard way that he can't just go sniffing other guild members willy nilly when their scents change - Cana had actually managed to give him a concussion that one time - so he was going to have to narrow it down really slowly. He hates slowly. Why can't he just be polite and ask if he can smell the other members? It's polite to ask first, right? But he'll deal with it because he's honestly trying to stay on Lucy's good side for a while (and that means staying on _Erza's_ good side for a while).

Suddenly, the new scent is stronger and Natsu whips his head around to find Levy wandering her way towards him; well, towards Lucy, but Natsu's right there, too. Lucky break.

Levy climbs onto the stool on the other side of Lucy and easily joins the conversation with Mira and Lucy about the Sorcerer spread. Natsu's never really understood Lucy's need to doll herself up because, despite all of his and Happy's teasing, she's the most beautiful thing Natsu has ever encountered and he can't believe she's his. Gajeel feels the same way about Levy, and Laxus about Mira, so Natsu doesn't feel too bad for not understanding one of Lucy's interests. He supports her, of course, and enjoys watching anything she does, but he's not sure he'll ever understand this one thing.

Natsu realizes he's zoned out, hand relaxed and gently thumbing the outside of Lucy's knee as he listens to the lull of the girls talk, when he catches Levy's new scent again. He sits up and debates his options, thinks through how he can get close enough to scent Levy without drawing attention to himself, but grins when he remembers who she's mated to. Gajeel won't mind Natsu scenting Levy out of curiosity and Levy is just as used to his and Gajeel's 'antics' as Lucy is.

So, he stands, hand trailing Lucy's thigh all the way up to her waist where he settles his hands again and breathes her in once more because he can't help it. She just fondly scratches his scalp. While he's got his face buried in Lucy's nape, he turns his eyes to stare at Levy with great concentration. The longer he looks at her, the more he thinks something is different about her.

Levy's always exuded strength and power, something that comes along with the sheer amount of magical talent she was born with, and she's done nothing but grow since Phantom Lord kick-started a world of change for Fairy Tail all those years ago. (Though Natsu will never admit it out loud except maybe to Lucy, if she asked, because he's found that he can't lie to her in any capacity, Levy scares him just as much as Erza when Levy gets _really_ mad.) Something's different, though, something Natsu has a hard time putting his finger on. Levy doesn't _look_ any different, at least not at first. She's still got the unblemished skin and big brown eyes and wild blue hair and pretty smile that she's always had and she doesn't sound any different. She's not acting weird, either, so Natsu's pretty sure Levy herself doesn't know anything's different. Natsu frowns. Normally he'd ask Gajeel about it, since he's the expert on all things Levy, but Gajeel's off on a solo mission with Lily while Levy stays at the guild to help the master with some translation projects.

While Natsu's thinking, he's still watching Levy like a hawk, so he catches it when Levy absent-mindedly reaches up to scratch at the back of her neck. Nothing out of the ordinary, sure, but it piques Natsu's interest - when she had moved her hair out of the way to itch, there was something _there_.

Without really thinking, Natsu moves away from Lucy and pushes Levy's wild hair over her shoulders to investigate his new findings. Excitement wells up in his chest when he sees the barely-visible outline of _scales_ beginning to show themselves. Her skin is already a bit more shimmery than humanly normal, and when the scales fully grow in, they'll become distinct, stiffen up, and spread from the back of her neck to her shoulders and shoulder blades. She's probably already got the same outlines on her stomach, too, which Natsu knows will spread to cover her entire abdomen and the small of her back.

He knows what this means, he_ knows_, and he's so excited. Natsu leans down to inhale Levy's scent in his eagerness; he smells _her_ \- the library, books old and new, ink, and those winds that blow in between winter and spring - but now there's something else, something heavy but bright brewing underneath, something that smells like the sweet air just after a storm.

"Natsu?" he hears Levy chirp a bit hesitantly and he finally comes out of his trance to see both Lucy and Mira staring at him, Lucy decidedly pissed-looking and Mira mildly concerned. When he lets go of Levy and moves back towards Lucy, Levy turns to look at him both warily and curiously.

He's not sure if Gajeel knows yet - actually, he's pretty sure Gajeel _doesn't_ know because there's no way he'd have left Levy otherwise. He also knows Levy doesn't know because if she did, so would Lucy, and then so would Natsu.

The girls are all staring at him, all three waiting with different kinds of anticipation for an explanation about his odd behavior, but he just stands there, clenching and unclenching his fists by his side and flickering his eyes between the three of them as he considers his options.

The thing is, Natsu knows this kind of thing makes some people nervous. He knows his own opinion about the subject, and he's pretty sure he knows Gajeel's opinion, but he doesn't know Levy's. Natsu's getting increasingly nervous, borderline panicky, because what if Levy doesn't like it? What if she's afraid? She needs to deal with this with Gajeel, just like Natsu would want Lucy to come to him, but telling her before Gajeel gets home could help her adjust to the idea. Right? But also Gajeel might kill Natsu, or this conversation with Levy could go _horribly_ wrong.

Eventually, he makes a decision.

He kisses Lucy, first on the lips then the forehead, then snatches Levy off the barstool and makes a run for it. Lucy and Mira both call after him, and multiple guild members shout something at his back too, but he's gotta talk to Levy before anyone catches up to him.

Natsu sets Levy down gently under the tree at Southgate Park and tries to figure out what he's going to say to her. Her small hand rests on his shoulder and she's smiling at him when he looks up at her.

"You okay, Natsu?"

She's such a great person. He's so glad that she's Lucy's friend and that she's helped Gajeel heal and that she exists in general.

"You know, Levy, I love you like my sister. I'll protect you until the day I die, just like I will Lucy."

She frowns slightly, probably wondering where this odd confession is coming from, and decides to tug him down to sit under the tree with her.  
"You'd do the same for the rest of the guild, Natsu."

He's not looking at her, his legs crossed as he plucks at the grass with determination. "Well, yeah, of course, but you're special. You're Gajeel's mate, and that makes you family. Plus, you're Lucy's best friend."

"What's this really about, Natsu?"

"Levy, how do you feel about babies?" he blurts, carefully creating a pile of grass on his knee.

"Babies? Like, in general, or actually having one?"

"Both, I guess?"

He glances at her out of the corner of his eye to see her thinking about it.

"I've never thought about it. They're cute, but they're a lot of responsibility. Gajeel and I haven't really talked about them, either, but I...don't think I would mind having a baby with him." She's blushing really brightly, her whole face and neck red, but Natsu can tell she's serious.

"Anyway!" she suddenly says, punching his arm lightly, "Shouldn't you be talking to _Lucy_ about babies if you want one?"

Natsu's sure he's just as red as she is, his whole body flushed with embarrassment, and he sputters out denials for a good few seconds while Levy laughs at him. He joins her in her contagious laughter and it makes him think of simpler days when all he had to worry about was fighting Gray and eating.

"Levy," he eventually says, his more serious voice catching her attention. They're both sprawled on the grass now, still breathless with giggles, and Natsu can hear the few guild members that are looking for them closing in a few streets away.  
"Levy, you're gonna have a baby."

"Probably, yeah, but Natsu, what-"

He sits up when she does and he gently puts one hand on her upper arm and the other on her stomach.

"Levy, _you're gonna have a baby_."

She stares at him, dumbstruck, and he takes his hands back to let her process.  
"How... how do you know, Natsu?" she whispers, and he can tell she's already rearranging her future in that always-on brain of hers.

"You, uh, your scent. It's changed. Then, when you sat down next to Luce, you itched at the back of your neck and I saw the, uh, the scales."

"Scales?" she mumbles. If Levy was any other person, Natsu would think she was in too much shock to really be understanding his words, but he knows that Levy's mind is just working overtime.

"Uhm, I should really let Gajeel tell you all of this-"

"No! No, tell me everything now!" she demands, hand gripping his arm to keep him from standing.

"Okay, well, Igneel taught me about what would happen if I mated with someone. You're basically going to adopt some of Gajeel's dragon slayer abilities until a month or two after you have the baby. You're gonna grow scales, mostly around your belly and the back of your neck. They're for protection of you and the baby. You'll have heightened senses, like us, and you might even be able to eat soft metals near the end of your pregnancy! Igneel told me that my mate will be able to eat low-temperature fire! Also, you're gonna be really strong for a while, probably. Isn't that cool?"

Levy's staring at him in a mix of bewilderment and awe, her fingers twiddling with the iron pendant she has around her neck that matches Gajeel's. After a few moments of silence, Levy grins really, really big and squeals.

"This is amazing! I've never heard of magic ability being shared through pregnancy! What a research topic!" Levy grabs Natsu by the upper arms and pulls him close. "I need another research subject. Natsu, you need to get Lucy pregnant. I'm going to check on Gajeel's mission progress."

Natsu has nothing to say to that, so he just lets her tug him off the ground and hug him as tight as possible.   
"By the way, Natsu. I love you like a brother, too, and I'll protect you until the day I die."

Lucy, Gray, Jet, and Droy come jogging into the center of the park just as Natsu and Levy are walking away from the tree and Levy loudly and happily announces to the four of them that she's pregnant. When they get back to the guild, they decide to keep it a secret from any other members until Gajeel returns the next day. He'd finished his mission early and would have been home today, but he'd decided to stop in town and look for some books on Levy's wishlist. Natsu and Lucy walk Levy home and leave her at her front door with huge smiles and tight hugs and more congratulations.

Later, as he's laying in bed next to Lucy, Natsu thinks about what Levy had said. _Get Lucy pregnant._ Now there's an idea.

"Luce," he whispers, unsure if she's awake or not, but she mutters an affirmative into his chest, so she's at least conscious _enough_.  
"Luce, let's have a baby, too."

She hums in agreement, snuggling closer to his side, and he waits to see if she's going to fall asleep or if she actually understood what he'd said.

Apparently, she heard him, because she pops up onto her elbow to look down at him with wide eyes.  
"What?"

"A baby, Lucy. Like Levy."

Again, he waits. She lays back down next to him, this time facing the ceiling as he is, and she stays quiet for a long while. He's not normally patient, but Natsu knows the weight of what he's asked of her. 

Natsu clearly remembers Romeo's mother's pregnancy. He had smelled something different on her when she had walked in that morning with Macao and informed the guild of her pregnancy and, as a child with no manners, hadn't hesitated to stuff his face in her stomach and inhale. She had laughed happily and swept him up in her arms and told him that the guild would soon have a little brother. That was the last time he'd seen her looking healthy. Natsu remembers not understanding what was happening when Makarov had held his hand at the funeral, nor why Macao was nealing with baby Romeo in front of a stone. The memory of all of the guild members' faces twisted in varying levels of agony and sorrow had never truly left Natsu. 

Now, Natsu is potentially asking Lucy to sacrifice her health. He'd learned, years later, that Romeo's mother had always had a weak body and that it was no _true_ surprise to the adults in the guild that she hadn't made it through childbirth. Lucy is a stronger, healthier, younger woman and she would have the borrowed power of the fire dragon protecting her, but he still knows that asking her to give up nine months of her life is a big question.

"Why, Natsu?" she asks into the silence that had built.

He answers without hesitance: "Because I love you, Luce."

Surprisingly, she laughs, a beautiful and light thing that reassures Natsu that he hasn't overstepped the boundaries of their relationship. "You know," Lucy begins when she's tucked herself back into his side, "I always thought I would be the first one pregnant."

Natsu smiles widely at her response as he rolls to envelop her in a hug. He knows she's saying yes, knows that she's telling him in her weird Lucy-speak that she's already thought about having a baby with him and had even decided she liked the idea way before he brought this up.

They go to sleep wrapped in each other and Natsu dreams of a little blonde boy holding a pink-haired newborn girl while Lucy sleeps peacefully in Natsu's arms.

**Author's Note:**

> this was originally supposed to be a solely/mainly Gajevy piece and then I wrote the first paragraph where Natsu is really physically affectionate with Lucy and I guess I just ran away with the idea that dragon slayers are tactile, protective lovers and along the way I fell in love with the idea that Natsu is actually pretty intuitive about feelings when it comes to stuff he's been directly taught and that he can be mature sometimes


End file.
